A growing number of Philly parents can’t communicate with their kids’ schools. Here’s why.

About a month after she arrived in Philadelphia from her native Guatemala, a mother went to the bus stop to pick up her son.

But her 11-year-old never got off the bus. And because the mother speaks Qʼeqchiʼ, an indigenous Guatemalan language, the staff at his Philadelphia School District school had no way to tell her what had happened — that the school had somehow lost him.

“On the day my child was lost, I was really scared and worried,” said the mother through an interpreter. She asked that her last name be withheld because of safety concerns. “I went to the school, but because there was no interpreter and I do not understand English or Spanish, I was not able to understand anything.”

Her son eventually made his way home with his sister, unharmed, but the experience was traumatic both for the 11-year-old and his mother. Staff who eventually contacted a community organization they knew had access to interpretation services in Qʼeqchiʼ (pronounced kék-chee) were worried and frustrated, too.

Though the district uses both in-person interpreters and a telephonic interpretation service to translate for families in more than 200 languages, a growing number speak less-common languages not covered by the district’s current interpretation service. The district spends $25,000 per month on LanguageLine, according to school board documents, which allows staff to access interpreters for phone calls with parents who speak languages other than English.

Federal and state laws guarantee students English language instruction and require schools to provide language access supports so families can meaningfully participate in their kids’ education.

And while the district’s policies do codify those regulations, “the families, students, and partners we hear from report they are not implemented effectively and consistently across schools or the various languages spoken,” said Kristina Moon, a district parent and lawyer with the Education Law Center of Pennsylvania. “All students, regardless whether they speak a language of lesser diffusion, are required to attend school and cannot be denied equitable access or parent participation.”

HIAS Pennsylvania, a nonprofit that assists immigrants and refugees from around the world, first began seeing an influx of Qʼeqchiʼ-speaking Guatemalans in the 2021-22 school year, said Michelle Ferguson, education program manager. Last year, HIAS and other organizations serving immigrants assisted about 40 Indigenous students and caregivers. Although advocates said they didn’t know the reason, that number is already doubled, and the school year isn’t over.

The Chester County Intermediate Unit’s Migrant Education Program serves 115 students who speak indigenous languages and attend schools throughout the region, including in Philadelphia — some who speak Qʼeqchiʼ, but others who speak Achi and Poqomchi, said Karisa Barlow, program coordinator.

School board vice president Mallory Fix-Lopez, a college professor who teaches English to speakers of other languages, has already reached out to Moon and other community members who spoke to the board in March about the language-access problem, she said. Fix-Lopez signaled changes are coming.

“As immigrant communities grow in Philadelphia, we must adjust our services to meet the needs of diverse communities, including diversifying the languages offered in our interpretation services,” said Fix-Lopez. “As a TESOL [teaching English to speakers of other languages] professional myself, I can assure you that we are committed to continually reflecting and adjusting to meet the ever-changing needs of our students, families, and caregivers so they feel welcome and supported.”

But for the moment, barriers remain — from the simple act of enrolling children in school to hearing from the school nurse.

Advocates say they are happy to support families with individual translation when necessary, “but this is not a sustainable approach,” said Julie McIntyre, who works with newcomer immigrant youth at La Puerta Abierta, another Philadelphia nonprofit.

It often falls to Parisa Khoshnood, the youth education case manager for HIAS, to explain as best she can the workings of school to families. It’s particularly challenging when she’s asked to talk about things like the consequences of truancy.

“Attendance has been a challenge coming from lack of interpretation services,” said Khoshnood, who was the one who received the panicked phone call when the 11-year-old was lost. “There are a lot of differences between the Guatemalan education system and the School District of Philadelphia.”

Safety is also a worry.

Last year, a kindergarten student tripped and fell down the steps at his Philadelphia school during dismissal, said Barlow, of the Migrant Education Program. The school nurse attended to the boy, and his father carried him home, but the school staff was unable to convey to the child’s father, whose native language is Q’eqchi’, what had happened.

Ultimately, Barlow and her colleagues followed up with the family in Qʼeqchiʼ and found that the boy could not put weight on his foot. With the program’s assistance, the boy received medical care, where it was discovered his foot was broken.

“This student’s school has significant language diversity and makes incredible efforts to honor those languages and provide strong language access that makes families feel welcome,” Barlow said. “But staff are hamstrung by the lack of a telephonic interpretation resource for speakers of Q’eqchi’ and other indigenous Guatemalan languages.”

Parents like the one whose son was lost feel disconnected from their children’s schools.

“I am sad that I cannot participate in my children’s education,” said the mother through an interpreter, as shared by Khoshnood at the March school board meeting. “I want to know if they are learning and progressing. But I don’t because there is no Q’eqchi’ interpretation. I want my children to be involved and I want to also be involved myself.”

The school board in 2021 declared itself a “sanctuary district” as a way to assure immigrant students and families they are welcome and will be protected in Philadelphia schools.

Language access services are key to that, said McIntyre, from La Puerta Abierta.

“Foundationally recognizing people’s primary language is really step one in extending a warm welcome to students and families from all over the world,” she said.